I hope so. Though when you read we are back in for Fabregas you do wonder.
Toni Kroos | Madridista
- Thread starter Varun
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I'd be amazed if we chased Kevin Strootman, especially this summer. He properly wouldn't even pass a medical for a start. Hopefully we pull off this Cesc deal then though I don't hold much hope with that either.
Eh? It seems quite clear Fabregas is up for sale this year.
Strootman is injured and there is no proof Fabregas has any intention of considering joining us or Barcelona are willing to sell, same can be said about Kroos though.
Clutching at straws there I reckon, but you never know...
I guess. I cant see us getting him but as ever I feel supremely pessimistic about this position in particular. Until we actually sign someone Ill just go on regarding every transfer that is mentioned as completely unrealistic.
IMHO, it would be pretty stupid to brief the media that the deal is close to be done unless the player has actually signed a contract. Hard to believe United would act so unprofessionally, i.e. after the Fabregas saga of last summer.
I dont remember those articles, are there links to them?
I'd be surprised if any manager wouldn't want Kroos if he's available. It's bizarre.
You're talking about one of the best players in the world in his position.
You're talking about one of the best players in the world in his position.
He's not available. Bayern aren't selling.
Isn't Van Gaal the type of man to say he's right even if evidence shows he's not? Maybe we cant get Kroos and rather than admit failure he's going the old "we didnt want him anyway" route. Last thing he wants is to look like we cant obtain our targets. All I've read about in the last few weeks is what they call "Van Gaal language". Where he retains the right to say whatever he wants and want you to believe it, even if its obvious thats not the reality of things.
Personality/character is a big issue for managers, and he may notr fit into their idea of football, too.
Anderson returning from loan will be like a new signing 
Hmm, Ducker's opinion certainly holds more sway than Jackson's.
Three possibilities. 1) LVG really doesn't rate Kroos, 2) journos are reporting this to help the club with negotiations, 3) journos are reporting this because the club don't want to admit that Bayern are going to refuse all offers.
Still impossible to say. That said, you'd think it would've come out earlier if LVG really had cancelled the bid for Kroos. After all, it's been a fair few days since he supposedly gave Woodward his wanted list and these journalists have certainly been reporting our interest in Kroos up to now.
Three possibilities. 1) LVG really doesn't rate Kroos, 2) journos are reporting this to help the club with negotiations, 3) journos are reporting this because the club don't want to admit that Bayern are going to refuse all offers.
Still impossible to say. That said, you'd think it would've come out earlier if LVG really had cancelled the bid for Kroos. After all, it's been a fair few days since he supposedly gave Woodward his wanted list and these journalists have certainly been reporting our interest in Kroos up to now.
LVG doesn't want Kroos? Who has said this?
My view entirely. No one is in a better position to assess the appropriateness of Kroos for utd than LVG himself, surely.
That and this could well be a ploy. I refuse to believe we were briefing journos we were about to sign him a few days ago for this to happen today. Why not just keep your mouth shut, makes you look foolish otherwise (Moyes/Fabregas for example).
The Guardian, and acknowledged by Ducker from The Times.
Damn this has gone full circle and back to nowhere.
http://www.theguardian.com/football...ster-united-interest-toni-kroos-bayern-munich
Louis van Gaal ends Manchester United’s interest in Toni Kroos
• New manager decides against pursuing midfielder
• Bayern Munich star had been long-term target of David Moyes
• Scholes says Rooney may have peaked and criticises Woodward
- Jamie Jackson
- theguardian.com, Thursday 22 May 2014 13.50 BST
Bayern Munich's Toni Kroos was a long-time target for David Moyes but the new Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has ended hopes of signing him. Photograph: Patrik Stollarz/AFP/Getty Images
Louis van Gaal has ended Manchester United’s interest in Toni Kroos, in what represents the new manager’s first major decision regarding the rebuilding of his squad this summer.
The Bayern Munich midfielder had been pursued by David Moyes, Van Gaal’s predecessor, with the 24-year-old identified as being able to help solve the deficit in United’s central midfield department.
Kroos, who impressed in a deep-lying role when Bayern knocked United out of last season’s Champions League, has only a year left to run on his contract at the German club.
Yet despite his ability to also play in the No10 role or as box-to-box midfielder, Van Gaal, who is aware of Kroos’s abilities from his own time managing Bayern, has decided he should not be a target for the club this close season.
Paul Scholes, who was United’s last top-line operator in the position until he retired in 2013, believes Kroos should be the prime choice as the 20-times champions seek to re-establish itself as contenders.
“The first player I’d bring in is Toni Kroos. He’s a top-class central midfield player but United need five or six to get anywhere near the top of the Premier League again,” he told Paddy Power.
Louis van Gaal: give me two years to turn United around
Kroos’s current deal expires next summer but Bayern are still playing hardball over a new contract offer. Their president Karl Hopfner said: “There will certainly be further talks. But at some point the player has to say what he wants,” Hopfner said in an interview with Kicker magazine. “We will not exceed certain financial boundaries.”
Hopfner pointed to the case of Michael Ballack, who left the club for Chelsea in 2006, as a similar example. “It was the same with Michael Ballack and at some point we withdrew the offer.”
You are a little late on that mate.
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Whatever the truth is, if we have been briefing that a deal was close, it doesn't inspire confidence that this summer's going to be any different to last. It would suggest we'll win the 'Going close to signing world class players' cup before buying some second rate players.
LVG deciding he doesn't want Kroos at this point makes little sense, if he really doesn't rate him then you'd think our interest would have dropped straight away. Why the delay?
Either we're negotiating, Bayern are refusing to sell or a preferred target (Fabregas?) has become available.
Either we're negotiating, Bayern are refusing to sell or a preferred target (Fabregas?) has become available.
Watch this space. Seems to me that Journos are giving us smoke & mirrors just to help with negotiations.
I think Bayern not willing to sell, which is very very true to their nature, is the most likely scenario.
It's best not to bother bidding for Robben either.
It makes no sense whatsoever really. I know that The Guardian among others have reported it, but there's a part of me that's rubbishing it. Why would he pull the plug all of a sudden? Kroos would fit his system perfectly too, it's baffling.
Oh feck this. I was looking forward to the summer. Going to bury my head in the sand till the season starts and we have some players.
Cleverley. Van Gaal loves to get credit for turning talents into worldclass players and is arrogant enough to believe he can actually do it with everyone. He doesn't really like buying players all that much.
Totally agree with this.
I would imaging that the club have had the list of players that van Gaal was interested in from the start of negotiations. There is no way in hell he would have decided this now knowing that he has the world cup. He would have made sure the club knew what he wanted from the get go.
Isn't this just another series of reports that come out every day? We had Muller, Robben, Badstuber, Fabregas twice and various other names linked with us as well as "United ready to sell RVP" the Rooney transfer away has cropped up.
Either way someone is lying/ twisting stories. Well find out more tonight when tomorrow's papers begin to leak.
Let's not forget the famous original list of LVG including some bizarre names.
Either way someone is lying/ twisting stories. Well find out more tonight when tomorrow's papers begin to leak.
Let's not forget the famous original list of LVG including some bizarre names.
The way LVG has been described as a hard man who don't take no sh1t, maybe Kroos was slow in giving a yes or no asnswer so LVG told him to do one, at the same time showing Ed what the expectations are... Or am I getting carried away
Not surprising but The Telegraph are running the same story as The Guardian now
You're probably being funny, but Cleverly isn't even a talent to begin with. Plus, Van Gaal might not like buying all that much, he's never had to do this much of a rebuilding job. We're going to spend a lot of money this summer.
So, is this all smokes and mirrors then? I've no idea what to believe.
My personal opinion is that we felt an agreement was close with the player, and we briefed as such. However, on discovering that Bayern were unwilling to part ways with Kroos, we swiftly backtracked and briefed an alternative story.
That raises the rather nasty possibility that we haven't learned from last summer's mistakes, doesn't it? Would be worryingly similar to our attempts at signing Fabregas and Herrera...
This sounds like Woodward's trying to cover from himself in case the deal doesn't go through. No way van Gaal would drop his interest now and not earlier, unless a different and significantly better midfielder has become available then there's no way this would have happened. This morning's comments from the Munich end seem to do nothing but reinforce the idea he's on his way.
I'm not buying into this myself.
I'm not buying into this myself.
why would Bayern risk losing him for nothing?
Perhaps they feel confident they can convince him to remain. It's not as if they need the money, and Pep wants him.
Could well be, though it would be very worrying if we were that convinced a deal was close without realising Bayern were refusing to sell. Not exactly pro work on our part, is it?
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